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ATI FireGL V8600
- ATI R600 Graphics Processor
- 65nm Manufacturing Process
- 688 MHz GPU Clock Speed
- 320 Stream Processors
- Shader Model 4.0 (DirectX 10) and OpenGL 2.1 Support
- 1 GB of GDDR-4 Memory
- 868 MHz GDDR-4 Clock Speed
- 512-bit Memory Controller
- 111 GB/s Memory Bandwidth
- PCI Express x16 Connector
- 1 x 8-pin. 1 x 6-pin Power Connectors
- Dual Slot Copper Cooling System
- Full Length Card (EATX Required)
- 2 x Dual-Link DVI Outputs
- Stereoscopic Output
- Genlock/Framelock Compatible
- Crossfire 2.0 Multi-GPU Connector
- Supports Windows XP and Vista 32-bit and 64-bit, Linux 32-bit and 64-bit, Solaris
- MSRP : $1,899 USD
ATI FireGL V8650
- ATI R600 Graphics Processor
- 65nm Manufacturing Process
- 688 MHz GPU Clock Speed
- 320 Stream Processors
- Shader Model 4.0 (DirectX 10) and OpenGL 2.1 Support
- 2 GB of GDDR-4 Memory
- 868 MHz GDDR-4 Clock Speed
- 512-bit Memory Controller
- 111 GB/s Memory Bandwidth
- PCI Express x16 Connector
- 1 x 8-pin. 1 x 6-pin Power Connectors
- Dual Slot Copper Cooling System
- Full Length Card (EATX Required)
- 2 x Dual-Link DVI Outputs
- Stereoscopic Output
- Genlock/Framelock Compatible
- Crossfire 2.0 Multi-GPU Connector
- Supports Windows XP and Vista 32-bit and 64-bit, Linux 32-bit and 64-bit, Solaris
- MSRP : $2,799 USD
ATI FirePro V8700
- ATI RV770 Graphics Processor
- 55nm Manufacturing Process
- 750 MHz GPU Clock Speed
- 800 Stream Processors
- Shader Model 4.1 (DirectX 10.1) and OpenGL 2.1 Support
- 1 GB of GDDR-5 Memory
- 850 MHz GDDR-5 Clock Speed
- 256-bit Memory Controller
- 108 GB/s Memory Bandwidth
- PCI Express 2.0 x16 Connector
- 2 x 6-pin Power Connectors
- Dual Slot Copper Cooling System
- Standard Length Card (EATX Not Required)
- 2 x DisplayPort, 1 x DL-DVI Outputs
- Stereoscopic Output
- Genlock/Framelock Compatible
- Crossfire 2.0 Multi-GPU Connector
- Supports Windows XP and Vista 32-bit and 64-bit, Linux 32-bit and 64-bit, Solaris
- MSRP : $1,499 USD
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When we compare the new ATI FirePro V8700 card to ATI's previous generation high-end cards, the FireGL V8600 and V8650, a couple of things immediately stand out. First off, the introductory price point is much lower for the new FirePro V8700 card, shipping at $1,499. In comparison, their last generation cards were shipping at $1,899 and $2,799, although to be fair, we should note that it's possible to get a V8600 card for about $1,100 now, whereas V8650 cards currently sell for about $2,000. We're still seeing a much more price sensitive high-end product from ATI though, which definitely makes sense in a tighter economy.
Despite the lower price point, the V8700 delivers much more raw processing power compared than its predecessors. ATI has more than doubled the amount of Stream processors / shader units, up to 800 from 320 of their prior generation. They've also upped the clock speed of the processors to 750 MHz, which is on par with Radeon 4870-class cards based on the RV770 GPU.
The FirePro V8700 card is also the first of ATI's professional lineup which is shipping with GDDR-5 memory, which despite a modest 850 MHz clock speed can deliver over 100 GB/s of memory bandwidth. While this is slightly lower compared to their previous generation models, it's nearly identical in the big picture. The V8700 also ships with a PCI Express 2.0 x16 connector, which allows for doubled bandwidth on compliant motherboards. In terms of price to performance ratio, the FirePro V8700 is looking pretty solid. Let's have a look at the actual, shipping board.
